The Missing Underworld Princess
by Darkmoose84
Summary: The year is 2052. Tom and Janna's daughter has gone missing, and it's up to Selene and Sol Butterfly-Diaz to find her. Mostly OCs, but don't let that deter you. Following the events of Reality Fracture and using the same Lovecraftian motifs that story had, this should still prove an entertaining romp.
1. The Summoning

Old Avarius Mansion, Forest of Certain Death, Mewni, October 29th, 2052

The guests danced, laughed, and were merry in their proper way as the scent of sage pervaded what used to be Lord Brudo's downstairs living room. Candles flickered and burned bright as Gary Numan's "Berserker" played from the speaker wirelessly connected to the hostess' watch.

This hostess was none other than Princess Tiffany Ordonia-Lucitor, having decided to invite some friends over to the supposedly now haunted mansion. While her friends danced and joked around, she was busy drawing some sort of rune resembling a crude tree branch with five small limbs stemming from it. This was meant to protect the rest of the world from...whatever it was they were about to summon, that is, if her powers worked at all.

"I gotta say, Tiff," Ibza, a bird monster, began to speak, the rough look of her feathers complimenting her grunge clothing, and the crest on her head falling over one of her eyes, giving her a mysterious and elegant look, "your taste in music is pretty unusual, but I like it."

"What can I say?" Tiffany asked rhetorically as she finished her drawing and stood to face her friend, "I've got a taste for late 20th century Earth music. I guess I get that from my mom, since she's kinda from that world, though all this music is older than she is."

"Is this what the called 'Old School Goth' back then?" Ibza asked. The song changed to Souxsie singing something about being spellbound.

"Sure, why not?" Tiffany wasn't sure, but she was going to go with that response. She changed the subject. "Believe me I'm beyond stoked to try this, but I gotta ask, are you guys sure you want me to try this? I live in the underworld and see some hardcore stuff on a daily basis, but this goes beyond that. This is existential, sanity destroying stuff here..."

"if it gives me anymore answers to my dream's origin," Ibza followed, "I'm more than willing to go a little crazy to scratch my curiosity itch. I had the dream last night again: I was flying through what that Randolph Carter guy in your mom's book described as the Dreamlands. I saw the cat filled city of Ulthar, the webbed plateau of Leng, complete with giant purple spiders. Then I came across what I knew was Kadath, only it wasn't frozen like I keep hearing it's supposed to be. It was lush, green..."

"I'm wondering if it has evolved over time following Nyarlathotep's defeat," Tiffany mused, "Though when mom and dad last encountered him, he was making his second attempt to invade Earth as that Bill Cipher character. But who knows? I really just wanted everyone to have fun here." As the song switched to Peter Murphy's "Indigo Eyes," they looked back over the group and found everyone dancing to the bizarre music that was well before any of their time. Prince Jared and Slime Princess were dancing together, while in the kitchen Kegran the Bear Man was trying to perfect his new soda combination. Across from Tiffany and Ibza, Princess Lydia was cuddling with her girlfriend Rita on the couch. "And it seems everyone is enjoying themselves in some way at least."

"I'm also curious," Ibza began, "Is this house really haunted?" They immediately heard some creeks in the floorboards upstairs with the heavy thumping of boots, while one of the broom closets immediately opened and closed. Everyone looked startled at first before going back to their usual distractions.

"Does that answer your question?" Tiffany replied.

"Still, I bet you wish Sol were here," Ibza changed the subject.

"Sure," Tiffany switched gears with her, "It would be funny to see his face after I stole that storage bracelet he likes so much."

"Uh huh," Ibza wasn't convinced, "Any other reason?"

"No...maybe..." Tiffany squirmed a bit, narrowing her three eyes at her friend. She had thought about inviting her best friend, Prince Sol Butterfly-Diaz, but knew he might be helping his big sister get ready for her wedding next week. She was going to be one of the bridesmaids, but she had already gotten her dress from the royal seamstresses, so she didn't have any other planning to do. She did wish he was here though, so she could possibly steal his social security card that he used on Earth just to see his reaction.

So she could laugh at another of his lame jokes.

So she could finally tell him how she really felt.

So she could sit on his lap and make out with him.

"Anyways," she violently shook her head, "I need to continue." She got down to the floor and began drawing with her chalk again.

"Whatever you say," Ibza replied, laughing and shaking her head.

Tiffany's drawing this time covered a large area of the floor, Jared and Slime Princess had to move out of her way, and she accidentally bumped into Lydia's feet, forcing her to curl up on the couch closer to Rita. They didn't complain, just continued their laughter. When Tiffany finished her drawing, it resembled a massive star, and in its center was what looked like an eye with a fiery pupil. This should hopefully contain whatever was going to come from what she was about to do.

"Okay people!" she shouted, "I'm ready to do the thing! Are you all ready for this?" She turned down the music, and everyone attention shifted to her.

"Yeah!" the group shouted.

"Are you sure you want to see a portal to beyond any other dimension?"

"Yeah! You can do it Tiff!" they all continued to cheer her.

"Okay!" Tiffany shouted back, "My dad can open portals to the Underworld, but I'm going one step beyond that. Our goal is to open a portal to The Dreamlands and put Ibza's mind at ease...and because we're curious to see some other undiscovered dimensions that not even our scissors could reach. But there's a risk...we could all lose our minds just by looking at half of the inhabitance. Is it worth it?"

"Yeah!" the group shouted again.

"Alright," Tiffany concluded, "Here it goes." Tiffany's eyes began to chant in some language her friends didn't understand while levitating from the floor, her eyes glowing a bright yellow.

Above her, some strange portal began to open, almost like a tear in the ceiling. Beyond it were a vast cluster of stars, as well as a burning red nebula that stretched across the space. The group admired how beautiful it was until what looked like huge black tendrils reached through the cracks and spread themselves across the ceiling of the room. In the next instant, a gargantuan three-lobed burning eye peered in from the portal, and Tiffany and her friends knew no more.

 **Scene 2 coming soon**


	2. The Butterflies Discuss

Two days later…

"You don't have to do this," Queen Star said through the hologram on Selene's watch, "We can just as easily send out a crew of knights to find her. She'll be okay; I'm sure."

"You know as well as I do that might not be the best option," Selene replied with some frustration, swiping the screen of her phone and sending the hologram flying out in front of her, causing it to grow into a full size image of Star, "I squadron of knights is no match for whatever weirdness Tiffany's gotten herself into...knowing her, she probably summoned an angry balrog that took her captive and won't let her go until she caves and gives him a glass of chocolate milk. She at least would have texted by now, though."

"But really, sweetie," Star continued, her blue hologram twitching with static for a moment as a random moth flew through it before the image returned to normal, "You've got a lot to worry about on your own. We'll find Tiffany. Your uncle Tom already has half his own army scouring Mewni for her. You've got your wedding coming up that I know you said you wanted to plan yourself."

"You're right, mom," Selene flashed a fake smile while fastening the straps of one of her knee-high armored boots, "I AM taking care of the wedding. One of my bridesmaids is missing, and I need to go find her. Besides, Sol won't admit it, but he's worried sick about her. If I don't go out there with him, he's going to do something reckless and stupid."

"Okay, you got a point," Star replied, face-palming, "That boy takes too much after my younger self. But still..." Star paused for a moment. She thought for a moment about how she felt when she was younger. There was a sense of nostalgia before there was a sense of empathy. "I...I won't try to tell you that you can't or try and stop you like your Grandma Moon would have. Instead, I'll be like Grandma Angie and say go for it. Just…please be careful, okay? I gotta say that because I'm your mom."

"And I appreciate the concern," Selene sighed while regaining her composure, "I understand your position and perspective...But I must ask...Are you already preparing to be a grandma, even before the marriage?"

"Noooooyeeeesss?" Star answered, giving a huge grin. For a moment, Selene thought the hologram made Star look almost ghostly. "Can you blame me for being a little excited?"

"Ha, of course not," Selene shook her head at the triviality, "But I believe you're jumping the proverbial gun, mother. Jack and I haven't..." She paused, wanting to stay focused again on the task at hand. "You know I can be as antediluvian as grandmother is, right? Perhaps that's a flaw in me, but I need to stay vigilant. Sol and I will aid in the search for Princess Tiffany. I promise."

"Okay, just stay safe," Star responded, "Your dad and I love you."

"You as well, mother," Selene replied, "Farewell." She pressed the end call button on her phone. As Star's hologram faded, she had almost a sad, anxious look on her face.

Sol poked his head in the door, hoping that his sister was a bit calmer now and that she was a bit more welcoming at the moment. He had learned through the years not to just barge in on her; the result usually involved him getting a small magic blast that sent him flying out of the room.

"Is it safe to enter?" Sol asked sheepishly.

"Yes," Selene answered, rolling her eyes though she was glad to see him, "You may enter, brother."

"Were you and mom fighting again?" he asked as he made his way into the room.

"No," she replied, "Just trying to discourage me from searching for Tiffany with you."

"You really don't have to come with me," Sol told her, shrugging casually, his blonde hair and sun patterns on his cheeks standing out in the morning light from the window, "I think I can handle whatever this is on my own."

"Yet you're not taking any knights with you?" Selene asked, blowing her beautiful dark brown hair out of her face as she strapped on the second boot. The moons on her cheeks glowed for a moment as she dipped down to finally tighten the irritating fastener with which she had been struggling.

"They'd just get in the way."

"I fully agree with you there," Selene continued while standing up, her armored dress (that greatly resembled her grandmother's) glistening in the sunlight, "But is that it or are you trying to make some reckless, showy rescue attempt to impress her in some way? Isn't she your girlfriend by now?"

"She's not my girlfriend," Sol answered sharply before blushing.

"Uh huh," Selene replied, not entirely convinced, "But I think she still considers you her best friend, no matter how many pranks and jokes she pulls on you. I just think it would better if I come with you as well. My magic would definitely help in whatever dire straights she must be in."

When it came to Selene, she was very practical, analytical, and studious; this was her main strength but also her greatest weakness. She would study new magic long into the night, only to be exhausted the next day she would test it with the spells still not turning out right. She worried sometimes that her mom was disappointed that she wasn't as fun-loving as when her mother was young. Selene had to tell herself that these worries were ridiculous, she couldn't help feeling inadequate at times; the only thing she could do was try and be the best queen she could be, and with that came her constant strives to be better and work harder, many times to her own detriment.

Sol just wished she could unplug and relax for awhile, usually trying to come up with some clever adventure for them or a dimensional trip they could take to get her mind off of it. But of course he knew this was not the time for it, as he was feeling just as anxious that their longtime friend was missing.

"Neither mom, dad, nor I want you to overexert yourself," Sol explained, "We just know you have a tendency to take on more than you can chew, like you want to take on every task yourself. You've got a wedding to plan...and are you even telling Jack about this?"

"No, I'm not," Selene said, "I don't want him to worry, too. But anyways, do we have any leads as to where she might be?"

"Yes, I'm..." Sol paused for a moment, sticking his tongue out of the side of his mouth as he thought, "I'm pretty sure I have a lead on where she is. She mentioned the old abandoned Avarious mansion in the woods on one of her various social media accounts. It's not on any of the modern maps anymore since Lord Dennis rebuilt their castle, but she took me there once when we were little. I think I can find it again."

It took him that long to think of that? Selene thought to herself but was considerate enough not to voice.

She looked down at her wand, studying its cobalt blue steel handle and casing. It was royal, elegant, yet stalwart, much like her. Two silver wings flanked the head of the wand that reminded her of the valkyries from the Nordic legends of Earth. In the center of the head was a shimmering, moon- shaped viridian gem by which she would always feel hypnotized if she decided to stare at it for too long. She picked up the wand, twirled it in her hand before stopping it at the ready.

"Alright," Selene said, "Let's roll." She fired a pink beam from the wand out the window, causing Cloudy to appear, screaming as he did. The siblings approached the window.

"Hey Selene," Cloudy greeted them, his voice pitch still extremely high.

"Good morrow, Cloudy," Selene politely returned the greeting as the two of them climbed on top of him, "Let us go to the Forest of Certain Death, if you please."

"Okay," Cloudy's tone sounded sarcastic, "If you say so." With that, the three flew through the cool autumn air towards the dark, creepy forest, neither of them certain what they could face there or what eldritch horror Tiffany may have encountered. Little did they know the magnitude of what a portal to the Dreamlands could have upon their realm or what unspeakable abominations lay beyond.

Selene thought more of her upcoming wedding as well. She had begun reconsidering telling Jack about the excursion she was currently taking. If he knew, he'd be there in a heartbeat (of course having been granted his own set of scissors). His mellow demeanor and casual approach to life was always the perfect counter-balance to her constant seriousness.

Not to mention, she thought the natural turquoise streak in his hair was amazing, which he had inherited from his equally amazing mother. Her mind then turned to happier times when the three of them would skateboard through the Butterfly castle halls. She might have called her "Aunt Jackie" when she was younger, but that would change once she became her mother-in-law in a week.

If she could just talk to him, he would put her right at ease. But she didn't want to put him in any danger.

Just one little text to him...just to let him know how she was and what she was doing...


	3. The Horror-Filled Manor

The prince and princess continued their trek through the air atop Cloudy, flying above the treetops of the Forest of Certain Death. Selene was listening to her father's voice message on her watch, noticing off in the distance a flying-V formation of spear wielding demons, no doubt part of Tom and Janna's legion combing the area for Tiffany. Sol was looking down over the pathways through the foliage to make sure they were on the right track.

"Selene," King Marco's voice beamed from the watch, "I'm just calling to say that your mother and I love you and your brother and we want what's best for both of you."

"Over there!" Sol's shout interrupted Selene's concentration as he pointed for Cloudy to fly near a certain grove.

"And I've appreciated your studiousness and dedication to your regal bearing," Marco's voice continued from the small speaker, "And I've admired how hard working you've become, but I hope you know what you're doing is completely reckless and unlike you. Who knows what's waiting for you in those woods?"

"No...no...no..." Sol muttered while cycling through the menu on his bracelet which held a small storage portal, which of course a certain Rick Sanchez built for him years ago. Finally, he found the object for which he was searching, the electronic, cartoonish image of a parachute framed in a small blue box that hovered above his right. "Yes," he concluded before pressing the air where the effigy hovered. This soon produced a large pack with a rip cord on the side of it that he quickly put around his shoulders.

"Of course," Marco continued as he ended his message, "With how determined you are, we're not going to try and stop you. Just be careful. Oh, and watch out for your brother and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Wheee!" Sol screeched as he leaped off the cloud.

"Sol, no!" Selene yelled after him, "You're not high up enough for that." But of course it was too late as she saw the image of her brother's parachute deploy, only to see it get snagged by a group of branches.

Cloudy flew down to a small clearing near where Sol had supposedly landed. Selene quickly jumped off of Cloudy and ran down the path.

"Please be alright, please be alright," she kept repeating until finally she found her brother hanging from his parachute while stuck in the tree branches.

"Hey!" he shouted, "I'm alright. You don't need to spaz."

"Don't scare me like that, brother!" Selene yelled back up at him, "You could have seriously gotten hurt. You're in your early twenties and still you behave so childish."

"Hey, at least it was fun!" Sol replied, "I'd been waiting to do that all day."

"But what made you decide to dive here?" Selene asked.

"Well, this is the spot!" Sol answered from high above her, "Tiff and I used to come here a lot." He waved his arm and lo and behold to Selene's left was the old, dilapidated Avarious mansion. "I remember once, we were running from some monster and then hid in some hollowed out tree nearby here. She gave me a kiss on the cheek after that; I think she was just scared of the monster."

"And still you continue to prove how dense you are, dear brother," Selene muttered under her breath, but she then continued to speak to him, "Wait there. I shall use magic to get you down."

Just them, a portal opened between her and the tree where her brother hung, and out of it stepped her fiance, Jack, pocketing the scissors he used while readjusting the keytar he had just been playing.

"Hey, Selene," Jack smiled as he saw her, "I got your text and decided to make an abrupt exit from the gig."

"Jack!' Selene grumbled, her tone half of agitation, half of concern, "I didn't mean for you to come. It's really dangerous out here." She rolled her eyes but still couldn't help but smile at him. "And you know your new roadie is going to be rather disgruntled when he sees you're not helping him evacuate your stage equipment."

He moved in closer to her and took her and wrapped his arms around her.

"I already told him where I was going," Jack replied with a smile, his voice as mellow and calming as always, "He was pretty cool about it. Plus, the guys are helping him out."

Across dimensions, on Earth, Jack's bandmates were piling the poor roadie kid up with boxes, but he didn't mind. After all, it meant Jack could help a true love's cause.

Back on Mewni, Jack leaned in and kissed Selene, which gave her a sense of calm she hadn't felt in days upon days.

"Mmm, I think I needed that," Selene sighed, almost forgetting where she was.

"But where's your brother?" Jack asked, looking around.

"Up here!" Sol shouted, producing a laser knife from from his wrist portal, "And you two will have plenty more time for cuddling in a week. Let's continue to the house." He then cut himself loose from the straps, only fall and bounce off of several branches before hitting the ground face first. Thankfully, he wasn't high up enough to sustain any serious injury, but he was still pretty sore nonetheless.

"Well, serves you right," Selene looked down at him with disappointment.

"Worth it!" Sol muttered from the dirt in which he was still facing while holding a finger in the air to emphasize his statement. Jack came over and pulled him up.

"I think we need to work on your landing, dude," Jack stated, "I after everything dies down, we make some time for skydiving. I just got a new wingsuit I haven't tried yet either."

"Sure," Sol said, brushing the dirt off of himself, "But we gotta find Tiff. I really really hope she's okay." There was an uncharacteristic nervousness in his tone.

"Relax, man," Jack chimed, patting Sol on the shoulder, "She'll be alright; the three of us will search together."

"Oh, no," Selene grumbled, putting her fingers on his chest, "You, good sir, are going straight back to Echo Creek where it's safe and I don't have to worry about you getting hurt."

"Oh, come on," Jack laughed, reaching up and gently removing her hand, "You know we've been in worse scrapes than this."

"True," Selene sighed, turning around, only to have Jack hold her from behind, "I suppose I'm just more concerned right now because of next week; I don't want anything bad to happen to us before then. It's just unfortunate timing."

"Well, I came so I could keep you from worrying," Jack said, "You know I have that effect on you."

"Also true," Selene snickered and smiled at last.

"Okay, love birds," Sol rolled his eyes, "Let's get going."

The three then headed towards the old house. The porch stairs creaked under their weight as they neared the door, but what gave them an even more ominous feeling were the strange, guttural sounds coming from the front door, which was slightly ajar. They opened the door to find a darkened room, the candles from two nights ago having gone out, with the only light coming from the cracks in the window and the open door. Sol looked at the weird tree branch markings on the inside of the door and confirmed Tiffany had indeed been there.

Behind the sofa, they noticed something very large and hairy moving up and down and knew this must be where that strange sound was coming from. The adventurers moved around the couch to find a large creature that resembled a 12 food tall gorilla, although its mouth looked like it was split down the center of its head rather than on any sort of face; it did have two beady pink eyes that might have been in the correct place on either side of the mouth. It also had what looked like four long arms, two of which seemed to come from the other two's elbows. The thing was leaning down and eating what looked like a loaf of stale bread off the floor.

It then looked up at the three and roared.

Roll for initiative, heroes.

"Oh crap!" Sol shouted. He then readied himself into a fighting stance. "I think this is one of the things dad said he fought years ago." It then rushed Sol, who guarded himself against the beast's might with his forearms, though the thing nearly pushed him out the broken window.

Selene and Jack had jumped out of the way when they heard some heavy fluttering sound from the kitchen area. In no time came two creatures with the heads of giant vultures, the body of insects, and large batwings from their backs. Their skin was reminiscent of the type of makeup used in the zombie movies from Queen Janna's old collection.

"Whoa, dude!" Jack exclaimed, "I think these were the things my mom fought once."

"Let's hope they go down just as easy as then," Selene followed as the flying abominations began to attack them.

Selene fired a series of magic missiles from her wand which knocked one of the creatures into the ceiling. The second one bit Jack on the arm, which he viciously shock off before grabbing his keytar and wacking the thing in the head, causing it to stagger a bit before Selene blasted it with a Rainbow Fist Punch. (One of the few of her mom's spells she had mastered)

Sol had a little more trouble, given the enemy he was fighting was twice his size. He delivered several jabs at the creature's chest, only to seemingly have no effect. The creature retaliated by slamming Sol in the stomach, sending him sliding across the floor on his back. No sooner had Sol regained the air in his lungs than he had an opportunity to dodge roll the creature's fist almost pounding him into the ground. Upon regaining his fighting stance, Sol generated two electric gloves that would deliver a shock upon each punch. He slipped them on and began delivering the same punches again, this time causing the creature to stagger. He then proceeded to spin kick the creature in the head, knocking it to the ground and causing it to let out a last roar before it was knocked out.

Suddenly, in the corner of the room near the stairs, a massive red portal opened, and immediately the creatures they were fighting were sucked into it. They disappeared into it, though the portal remained swirling before them.

"Well, that was...interesting," Sol stated, out of breath.

"Could that be where Tiffany went?" Selene asked.

"Well, her post said something about opening a portal to the Dreamlands," Sol explained, "Wherever that is."

"I believe I've studied a portion of it," Selene followed, "Supposedly, no one has been able to scissor portal to it, and those who have been able to travel there have gone insane or disappeared entirely."

"Then there's no time to waste," Sol said, "Let's go right now."

"I'm with you all 'til the end," Jack interjected, "I'm going with the flow of how Mewni operates here. Ready when you are." He gave another smile and a shrug.

"I suppose we have no other options," Selene decided, "We must rescue our friend."

And the three, albeit with some hesitation, stepped through the glowing red portal into the esoteric realms that few mortals dared enter before them over the past centuries, prepared to face what unnameable horrors awaited them in the Dreamlands. Sol only had one thing on his mind, no matter what terrors would attack next: his beautiful friend had to be brought home.


	4. Preventing the Ritual

"I'm in fairy rings and tower beds\'Don't report this,' three men said\Books by the blameless and by the dead\The King in Yellow and the Queen in Red." – Blue Oyster Cult, "E.T.I."

The three friends emerged from the portal and found themselves on a wet, rocky point overlooking an old harbor where it appeared some small, distant denizens moved back and forth, loading their large wooden ships with unknown cargo to take off to the distant shores across the crashing, viridian seas with the evening horizon that seemed to be going down in a spot where the heroes could not see. All they could see was a red tinted, rocky shore, paired with said crashing waves and an already starry sky that seemed to go on forever and clearly merged with the far off ocean in a dark void that made the three of them wonder if there were anything beyond this realm of bizarre cosmic bodies that would have left both Mewni and Earth scientists scratching their heads. Still, it looked beautiful in its picturesque exultation.

"Wow," Sol swooned, "It's so pretty and unnatural. Can we live here?"

"Dude, I could totally dig catching those waves on a daily basis," Jack declared.

"Yeah, I'll admit," Selene sternly stated, holding her wand at the ready, "It's incredibly pretty, but we need to keep our guard up. Those creatures came out of the portal that lead here. There may be more of them."

"The little people down there don't seem to be worried," Jack chuckled, "Why should we?"

"They may be more accustomed to their attacks than we are," Selene stated, "All I know is that we must remain vigilant. We've got to find Tiffany, wherever she could be. 

"Sis, I want to find her more than anyone," Sol muttered, "she is my...best friend, after all. But just chill out, okay? You start freaking out and worrying, and that's when mistakes start happening."

Selene lowered the wand for a moment.

"You're right, dear brother," Selene sighed, "I guess I'm still shaken from our last battle. Let's just find your girlfriend and return her home."

"Okay…," Sol agreed, not fighting her on the nature of their relationship this time, "She's got to be somewhere. There has to be some clue."

He continued to look around the cleft until he found what looked like cylindrical white chalk laying on the rocky floor. He moved near it and noticed off to his right was what looked like a cave. He pulled a heavy LED flashlight from his storage portal and lit up the inside; there he found more chalk sticks on what looked like jagged stairs leading downward.

"And I think I just found it," he continued, "Tiffany was using this to draw warding symbols. She must have dropped it. Come on!" He then proceeded to briskly race into the darkness.

"I believe my matters of deduction are rubbing off on him," Selene smirked, pointing her thumb in the direction he ran.

"That," Jack responded, "and I think he's just super motivated right now." He looked into Selene's eyes and kissed her again. "Gorgeous women have that effect."

"An irrefutable point," Selene smiled, "But we best follow him, lest he suffers any more of his own folly."

The two followed Sol into the dark crevice and down the steep, slimy rock steps, Selene using the light in her wand to show the way. She then received a text from Foolduke, asking them if they had seen her husband anywhere. Apparently, he had been gone for two days as well. Shortly afterwards, she received another text from her Uncle Marco (she had no idea why her grandparents wanted to give him the same name as her dad), but it was something about how he was still having bad dreams about some guy in a disheveled yellow cloak hunting him through the stars.

Selene and Jack continued through the darkness until they began rounding a corner and seeing that the walls were illuminated with a sinister red glow. They dared to proceed around it until they found the stairs terminated at a large cliff that seemed to hang far above an empty darkness. This is where they found Sol, staring up in the air at his friend and the other party attendees from the night before last. They were all hovering motionlessly in the dark void, their only illumination was from the tall iron lamps that encircled the large cliff.

In the center of the landing stood none other than a familiar face: Ruberiot.

"Mister Rubi," Selene mutter, "what brings you to such a forsaken place?" The group began approaching him, only to have a sonic blast from his guitar force them back. They were thankfully able to hold their bearings, but this was undoubtedly a shock to them.

"You may no longer commune with him," some deep, resonating voice came from Ruberiot's mouth, his scraggly red and gray hair hanging over his temples in snaky coils, "He is now my vessel." As he raised his head, the friends could see that his eyes were glowing a bright, unnatural yellow.

"Whoa, dude," Jack said, "I'm a little lost now."

"No doubt, outsider," the entity controlling Ruberiot retorted, "I've been influencing this artist for some time now, waiting for him to eventually do my bidding and rid him of his own conscience. The music I had been playing throughout the kingdom has been opening their minds to this great realm. It was just a matter of time before we found someone who was willing to open the doorway and allow themselves to inadvertently become a sacrifice to us."

"If you're not Mr. Rubi," Selene asked, "who are you?"

"You are unworthy to speak my true name, mortal," the entity answered, "but all will know me by the yellow sign." For a brief moment, the group looked at Ruberiot's form and thought they saw something hovering above him, a large humanoid figure in a yellow robe, though it's actual limbs looked like yellow tendrils. In the next half a second, it was gone. "First, I shall return Nyarlathotep, the Crawling Chaos, to his ruling state of this realm with the sacrifice of this beautiful half-demon lass and her friends."

"We'll see about that!" Sol shouted and charged forward.

"You reckless fool," the entity chided and sent a loud, sonorous note from his guitar, causing another shockwave. In the same instant, Sol generated a glowing blue force shield from his wrist, allowing him to absorb the shock and continue forward. When he was close enough, he drew out his electric whip and began lashing out at the possessed Ruberiot, who was still grinning from ear to ear and who quickly blocked the lashes with his instrument.

Selene then took the initiative and began firing magic bolts at Ruberiot, not to harm him, but to stun him or incapacitate him. He was not himself, and Selene had no desire to hurt the old balladeer. He turned his yellow glowing eyes to her while still deflecting Sol's strikes and her blasts seemed to dissipate before they reached him, as though his gaze and presence alone countered her magic.

"Keep firing those cool magic missiles at him, gorgeous," Jack said, "I've got an idea. Just walk forward." She followed suit, walking forward and continually firing magical blasts at him. When she was close enough, he climbed on her shoulders and, holding his skateboard at the ready, leaped off of her and whacked Ruberiot in the head with the board. He wasn't that hard; he also didn't want to hurt him, but it was enough to bring him down to the ground. There was a brief moment where the yellow-robed figure appeared above him before disappearing, and as it did, Tiffany and her friends floated down to the ground.

"Tiff!" Sol shouted as he rushed over to her. She lay unconscious on the ground, but Sol picked his friend up and cradled her in his arms.

"Wow, color me impressed," Selene said to Jack, "I didn't expect you to come up with a plan like that, but I'm very glad you did." This of course was coming from the guy who, when they were younger, asked her if one would die if they burped, sneezed, and farted all at the same time.

"Eh, call it a fluke," Jack laughed and scratched the back of his head.

"Ugh, what happened?" Ruberiot moaned as he arose. Selene and Jack rushed to help him up. His eyes were no longer glowing, but as he surveyed his surroundings, he saw that Selene's blue battle dress looked yellow to him, as did Jack's teal sleeveless shirt. He looked around some more, namely at the other figures in the room, and they were all yellow.

"I think whatever possessed your mind has vacated after that nasty blow," Selene answered.

"I would hope," the old musician replied, "I kept having dreams of flying across space to this alien city called Carcosa. I mean, it made for great song material, but it was pretty disturbing what I found there...I don't think I even want to remember that."

Just then, Tiffany's party guests began to stir as well.

"Where are we?" Slime Princess asked.

"Why does my head hurt so bad?" groaned Rita.

"Hey," Ibza yelped after adjusting her hat and stroking her beak, "is Tiffany okay?"

"C'mon Tiff," Sol pleaded, "wake up!" He shook her for a second. He checked around for a pulse, and thankfully she had one, but she was still not waking up from whatever spell she was under. "Oh, Tiff, if you would just wake up for me. I promise, you can still my wallet and car keys anytime, and I won't even get mad...unless that's part of the joy, then I'll act mad. But still, you gotta wake up...Please let me know you're okay..."

Just as he was pleading with her and even beginning to sob over her faded, condiment stained Joy Division shirt and pleather mini skirt, she opened her eyes and looked over at Selene and Jack. She then winked one of her eyes at them but then closed them again and went back to playing the sleeping beauty role.

"Why don't you kiss her, dear brother?" Selene chimed, an uncharacteristically playful tone in her voice, "Perhaps that would disrupt the enchantment."

"Yeah, kiss her, dude," Jack followed.

"Kiss her! Kiss her!" Ibza started shouting, and the rest of her friends began shouting the same, as though they had forgotten their current circumstances and simply wanted to see this man wake up their best friend.

"Okay..." Sol hesitated at first, but he then recovered and in one fell swoop allowed his lips to touch hers. Just as he did, the half demon girl flailed her arms around his shoulders and leaned in to kiss him even deeper.

"And see," Tiffany laughed, "That was what it took to wake me up, prince boy."

"Tiff," Sol was understandably shocked, "You were awake…?" His face turned beet red.

"Come on," she said, floating in a circle around him before facing him again, "I'd been waiting for an opportunity like that for a long time. But all joking aside...Thank you for coming to help us. And when we get back, maybe we could be more than..."

Just then, there was a low humming sound that echoed through the chamber, and the group felt that they were not alone, that something large, horrid, and indescribable was watching them from deep withing the yawning blackness beyond. Selene began to think on what the entity that had possessed Ruberiot had said, that they were to be sacrifices for Nyarlathotep. She recalled that she had heard the name in some esoteric writings she read during her studies as an adolescent, and the stories surrounding him were equally as monstrous as the various yet vague descriptions of him passed down through multiple cultures.

Then they heard it. The sound manifested itself as a sharp, nasally laughter that reverberated through the Stygian chamber. It grew louder and closer with every moment, until the group could see one overwhelmingly gargantuan eye staring down at them.


	5. Escaping the Chaos Pharaoh

**I really hope you all enjoyed this. It was an ambitious project from the beginning, to have a group of next-gen OCs interact with each other and ultimately try and overcome a problem. Still, it ran as expected, much like a group of D &D players coming together to fight monsters, solve puzzles, and escape a dungeon. I also included some of my own head-canon, on which your welcome to agree or disagree. Either way, hope you like the conclusion.**

"And through this revolting graveyard of the universe the muffled, maddening beating of drums, and thin, monotonous whine of blasphemous flutes from inconceivable, unlighted chambers beyond Time; the detestable pounding and piping whereunto dance slowly, awkwardly, and absurdly the gigantic, tenebrous ultimate gods—the blind, voiceless, mindless gargoyles whose soul is Nyarlathotep." – H. P. Lovecraft

"Hey, yeah, I'm the one that you wanted/Hey, yeah, I'm the superbeast!" – Rob Zombie

The heroes, along with the friends they saved, continued to look beyond the dim lamps and through the Stygian darkness at what could possibly be coming their way. The nasaly laughter continued to echo off the walls. Slowly, the blasphemous creature began to make itself manifest from the dark cavern. It had a vague gelatinous quality to it, with black tendrils twitching this way and that through the cave before retracting and shooting out again as it came closer and closer. Despite how many gargantuan devils these friends had faced on their countless adventures during their many years together, even the dim visage of what this colossal monstrosity looked like sent their minds reeling, its sheer immensity and horror overwhelming them.

"It's here," Ruberiot whimpered softly, "I've heard so many songs about this being before, but I hoped it had been gone for good."

"What...the heck...is that?" Tiffany muttered.

Eventually, the horrid abomination made its way into the torchlight, though it did not look white as its shadow had suggested. The tentacles disappeared, retracting into what looked like a large triangular body. In fact, the entity looked more like an enormous, yellow pyramid with one huge eye that stared down at them with an almost humored look.

"Ha ha ha, oh boy," the entity finally ceased its laughter to speak, "To hear a half-demon girl say that, man, that must be a feat in the creepy factor." It continued to loom further over the group. "Sorry about that, kids. I had to put on my exoskeleton. It's been awhile since I've had visitors in this new joint. And man, this place is great! You've got one super lush forest with a bunch of tentacle faced rats, a whole city of super intelligent cats, a cavernous plateau of bloated purple spiders, and finally an icy wasteland, all a hop, skip, and a jump away from each other! Pretty crazy, huh? It has all the chaotic weirdness I could want, and believe me, I do love me some chaos!"

"Is that..." Sol stammered.

"Nyarlathotep..." Selene answered, "An ancient being of pure chaos and manipulator of reality with no permanent form."

"Ha, that's a name I haven't used in awhile," the entity retorted, "I've been called The Dark Pharaoh, The Dweller in Darkness, Randall Flagg, Slenderman, etc. But over the past century or so, I've kinda gone by the name of Bill Cipher. But you all can call me whatever you want; just don't call me a Dorito."

"I know that name..." Tiffany managed to squeak out. Sol looked at her and realized that in all the years he had known her, he had never seen her scared. "Mom and dad ran into you once..."

"Ah yeah," Bill mused, "So you're the sport of the loins of Ouroboros and White Tiger, eh? Nah, woman, I already knew who you were, too...Tiffany Lucitor-Ordonia. See, I was kinda hoping that little runt Hastur would bring you for a sacrifice to me, but it seems the offspring of Wand, Hoodie, and Basket of Kittens kinda screwed that up. So here I am, taking matters into my own hands. Nothing personal, but I need to regain a physical form if I'm going to make my visit back to the Earth realm."

"You will NOT touch her," Sol shouted, "Not on my watch, you corn chip-shaped freak!" he drew out his energy whip once more from this wrist compartment and leaped towards the towering triangle demon. Selene and Tiffany could barely shout for him to stay back before a massive laser shot from the entity's eye and blasted Sol to the ground; it was clear he wasn't moving.

Tiffany ran over to him and cradled his head in her arms. He was still alive, his face blackened from the ash and soot and his hair singed and standing on end; it was almost cartoonish, but the humor of the situation didn't deter the half demon princess from worrying about him. She then looked up at Bill, and any fear or panic she had gave way to pure rage. She felt the spirit of her grandmother enter her and immediately thought her all the times she saw her father's temper break. Her eyes lit with the very unholy embers of the underworld, and her hands caught fire.

"YOU...HURT...THE MAN I LOVE!" she growled.

"Ha, well that's what happens to 'heroes' in this world," Bill laughed, "The moron had it coming for attacking me. Not that he would've done anything anyway. Just trying to make an example of what I'll do to fire ants when they try and nibble at my feet."

"I'LL SHOW YOU A 'FIRE ANT!'" Tiffany shouted, her voice reverberating with all the unholy cruelty of the Underworld. Her eyes still glowing, she began floating in the air towards Bill. A fiery aura surrounded her being, which seemed to grow from her every second. The group could tell she was building up some sort of devastating attack.

"Alright then, self-consuming white tiger," Bill replied, still amused at her efforts, "Give us your best shot."

"Uhhh, should we be worried?" Jack muttered, staggering back.

"I remember once," Ibza replied, "we actually found some old vintage comics her Earth great grandfather collected."

"I remember that, too," Rita interjected, "Wonder Woman and Black Cat were my favorites out of there."

"But to the point," Ibza continued, "There was a character in them called the Human Torch. He could of course turn himself into fire, but it was stated that if he left his powers unchecked and let himself continue to heat up..."

"He could turn supernova and decimate the world?" Selene inquired.

"Exactly," Ibza responded, "And Tiffany, after we read that part together, said that she felt her rage could reach that point sometimes."

"In other words," Jack replied, "we need to get out of here before she blows up!" And with that, the friends all began running for the stone staircase that lead out of the cave.

Selene, however, stayed behind. Even if Tiffany's attack would have done something against this...thing that called itself Bill, it would still have destroyed this so called Dreamland in decimation around her, still putting her own safety in jeopardy. As long as Selene and her brother had known Tiffany, she was always short-sighted when it came to her anger. She wasn't about to let that happen to her, to be left in a lifeless unknown space forever.

She lifted the wand and prepared a variation of one of her mother's spells.

"NARWHAL POD ASSAULT!" she shouted. From her wand shot forth a rapid stream of cartoonish narwhals (one of who wore an eye-patch) and flew directly into Bill's eye. This was enough to break Tiffany's rage and cause her to look down at Selene. She floated back down to the ground, her eyes returning to normal and her aura dissipating.

"Ugh, seriously!?" Bill groaned, holding his closed eyelid, "Why is it always the eye? Not that it hurts per se, but it's still a pain to have to regenerate."

"We cannot win this," Selene said to Tiffany, "Right now, my brother needs you. We need to get out of here and back to our realm. I do not believe he can follow us."

"Right," Tiffany replied. She then picked up Sol and held him over her shoulder, as one might a sack of potatoes; the weight didn't seem to bother her. She and Selene then ran towards the staircase and proceeded to try and hike up it without slipping on the wet stone steps."

"Selene, you're okay!" Jack exclaimed as they emerged from the cave entrance, grabbing her by the hand and helping her up the final step.

"We mustn't delay," Selene answered, letting go of his hand and pointing her wand in the direction of the cliffside walkway, "This Bill creature is still pursuing us, and I would like to get to a clearing before we open a portal. We need secure footing."

The friends didn't waste any time and proceeded along the cliffside as quickly as they could. The laughter, along with some increasingly loud gelatinous slopping sound, continued up from the cave entrance, but Selene refused to look back. They had to keep moving; there was no choice otherwise.

Finally, they made it to a grassy clearing, standing on a plateau that curved around the larger mountain that loomed over the harbor they had previously seen upon their arrival. The sun peaked in through passing clouds, though the beautiful morning light was not enough to distract them of the dread that followed behind them. Sunlight would not deter this eldritch abomination as it might some other monsters. Selene stopped a moment to concentrate on a location. She picked her parents' throne room and opened a portal with the scissors she pulled from her dress pocket.

"Come on!" she yelled, and everyone made their way through the dimensional gateway. The exodus was proceeding as planned until they heard some deep booming sound, along with mild tremors from the ground. Selene still refused to look back, knowing full well what would happen if she did. Jack, on the other hand, was not so fortunate and looked behind at their pursuer. What he saw was an indescribable, colossal horror that caused his mind to reel, his eyes to turn to saucers, and the turquoise streak in his hair to turn grayish platinum.

Selene grabbed Jack by the back of his shirt and dragged him through the portal to safety. They hit the marble tile of the throne room before the portal closed behind them. Jack's mind reeled for a moment before he recognized where they were, wondering if any of the previous events even happened.

"Selene!" Queen Star was shocked but happy to see them, demonstrating this in rushing over and grappling Selene in a tight squeeze of a hug that left her breathless for a moment.

"Happy to see you too, mother," Selene gasped for breath before pushing away. She wondered sometimes if Star had forgotten she was no longer a child but a woman in her 20's. "We've rescued Tiffany and her friends, as you can see. But, mother, we've had some setbacks and will need your aid."

"Is Sol going to be okay?" Tiffany asked, having put him on the ground and cradling his head in her arms. Just then, her prince shook his head, his consciousness appearing to return.

"...I've had worse." Sol groaned out.

"Liar," Tiffany laughed before leaning down to kiss him, "Now, come on. You need to get healthy again." She then picked him up and carried him out of the room.

"Jack's not fairing so well, either," Selene stated, her voice full of concern, "Is there anything you can do for him?"

"Buh...buh...buh...buh..." Jack mumbled, staring off into space, his eyes still wide and trying to comprehend where he was or what was happening.

"Oh, don't worry about that, my uptight daughter," Queen Star said, her voice still having that cheerful sing-song quality of her youth, "I can handle it!" She leaned over her future son-in-law, rubbed her hands together until they gave off a warm, bright glow. She then held them over the man until he began blinking his eyes, and the streak his hair returned to its usual turquoise color.

"Wha...Whoa, dude," Jack swooned, "What happened?"

"You're okay, dearest," Selene smiled, attempting to hold in tears of joy, and wrapped her arms around his neck, "We saved Tiffany and made it home."

"I'm glad you two brought her home," Star smiled, "but don't worry me like that again. You and your brother's antics scare me sometimes with your random, dangerous adventures."

"Ha, and yours weren't much different when you were younger," Selene laughed, a rare thing for her that caught Star off guard.

"Gotta point there," Star muttered, "Buuuuut...I think you two earned some of the royal ice cream. You've both got a wedding to plan, so you need to clear your heads for it."

"Dude, I'm down for that," Jack said, Selene's arms still around his neck.

"Yes, indeed," Selene replied, not moving her head from Jack's shoulder, "I concur this situation requires creature-comforts."

The wedding was as lavish and beautiful as could be expected. They of course held it within a nearby woodland area. The white and green flowers lined the walkway all the way up to the alter. Star herself restrained her tears as she officiated it, as did Marco, Jackie, Pony Head, Tom, and even Janna. (It was actually Marco who cracked open the tears first) Selene and Jack kissed long and deep before the multitude, further solidifying the beautiful union between Earth and Mewni. When it came time to toss the garter, it predictably landed in Sol's hands, causing Tiffany to smile from ear to ear. Ibza then uplifted her wings and pushed her right into Sol's arms, causing them both to fall over and create more of a riotous laughter.

In all of the revel, however, none who had visited the Dreamlands could shake the feeling that they were being watch, by what they could not say. In the back of their minds, they knew Bill Cipher, if that was his real name, was still there, waiting to return when the stars were right for him and when he amassed enough power to cross to their world. Selene, however, would be ready for him if he ever did and knew that her distant friends in Earth's land of Oregon would gladly lend a hand, as they had numerous times before. It was just a matter of when this would happen that had them anxious.

Until that time had come to pass, however, they would enjoy this day and cherish it. Whatever the future would hold, it could worry about itself. Their minds would only focus on the joys of today, for deep down, they knew this was indeed all they were promised.


End file.
